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Tuesday, May 9, 2000
Robbs named
radio station’s
UH man
Local broadcaster will serve
By Paul Arnett
as KCCN-AM's consultant
for athletics
Star-BulletinLocal broadcast personality Don Robbs will take over as the consultant for University of Hawaii sports this July, KCCN-AM general manager Mike Kelly confirmed yesterday.
Robbs replaces Dave Iverson, who recently sold Seattle-based Broadcast Ink. Iverson originally bought the rights for Rainbow sports nearly seven years ago. He and KCCN-AM were awarded a new five-year contract in August 1998 that pays at least $1.4 million to the UH athletic department.
According to the deal, Cox Inc. -- which became KCCN's parent company May 1 -- is making base payments of $282,500. If ad revenue exceeds $800,000, then the radio station and UH split that amount equally.
"I don't think Dave Iverson getting out of the business will affect KCCN's end of the deal at all," Robbs said yesterday. "KCCN has been managing the contract the last two years.
"I'm leaving my current job at Hawaii Public Television and will be responsible for scheduling the UH events, hiring the talent and work with KCCN marketing the product. It's a part-time job. After 40 years of getting up every morning, I need to do something different. I needed a break, but I also wanted to keep working. This is a good situation for me."
Kelly feels it's a good situation for KCCN as well. Not only is Robbs the perfect person for the job locally, but Cox, which is a large mainland media company, plans to help market UH sports as well.
"We're really happy to have Don working with us," Kelly said. "He has an excellent knowledge of Hawaii sports. "Cox also wants to be involved in helping market our product. Last year, business increased greatly with Hawaii's success in football, and we look for even more this year.
"Cox has a sports division that has a lot of resources that can help us improve things, like adding signals to the neighbor islands and to help us with the Internet end of things. Yahoo.com wants to broadcast the radio games nationally on the Internet, so we're moving in a positive direction."
Robbs also will work with UH athletic director Hugh Yoshida in connection with hiring the talent. Robbs said he will remain as the broadcast man for baseball.
"I guess I can hire myself and give myself a raise," Robbs said, then laughed.
"It's too early to say who will be the talent in the other sports. That's something we will deal with later this summer."
UH Athletics
Ka Leo O Hawaii
